Moments
by tenamanda1988
Summary: A series of DMC drabbles and oneshots. Probably ranging throughout the series and covering all characters. Rated T to be safe, all rights to Capcom
1. 1

**Citric Acid**- Dante in leviathan

He felt like he was in that movie where the people were shrank and injected into that guy's body. Except he didn't have a submarine, which sucked, as it stank in here and he could use the air conditioning.

Though the sub wouldn't be any help unless it was made out of glass or something, what with the pools of acid. And he sure a shell wasn't going to travel in a glass anything unless there was chocolate involved.

He was just full of movie references today.

**Mirror – **twins

There'd been times when he was a child that he could look into Vergil's face and swear he was staring into a mirror.

They could probably have done their hair just by copying the others movements and watching the results. Sometimes their mother would even dress them in the same outfits, when they allowed the loss of blue and red and she felt confident enough that she could tell them apart without it.

Dante looked into his bathroom mirror, it was nowhere near matching his twin.

**Safety** – to live without

Safety was his mothers love.

Safety was the faint remembrance of his father's strong hands, an unbreakable shield.

Safety was sneaking to each others beds in the middle of the night and curling up together, snug under one blanket. And the knowledge that family was close by.

It was no wonder Dante always slept with one eye open and a weapon under his pillow nowadays.

**Flower** – Eva and Sparda

She'd asked him for a gift when he'd sought her permission to court her. One to let her know how much he loved and knew about her.

He'd smiled and nodded, the corners of his eyes crinkling in wry amusement at her challenge.

She'd sat for days waiting for him, fearing some soppy token. Chocolate, perfume and flowers, or God forbid a cuddly toy Things an ordinary woman might value and expect from her beloved. He was only a pretend human after all, and copied his humanity from the real thing.

But a week later she'd unwrapped brown paper to find a flower, exquisitely grafted onto the handle of a revolver in gold. She smiled, and let him know he'd won.

**Introduction** – Nevan/Dante

He needed no introduction.

He was instantly recognisable, white haired and blue eyed with a killer smile that drove the girls wild.

How they loved him and his music, his songs and the electricity that sparked whenever his fingers strummed the wires. The trained bats that encircled him almost like a lover before zipping over the heads of the crowd. "Let's rock!" he would yell and the show would begin.

Dante sighed and came back to himself from the fantasy, gazing down at Nevan in his arms. "Damn babe, you're wasted with me."

**Fade** – Devil arms, an explanation for why Dante doesn't use the same ones consecutively in games.

Cerberus lay in his lap, light and willing. A sanchaku that could crush an enemy with a single blow.

But the icy metal was warming, water dripping onto his pants.

Soon Cerberus would just be a piece of metal, not better than what a mortal might forge.

A demons soul as a weapon was a precious prize indeed, but a soul can only be bound to the mortal world for so long before it needed to be free.

I'm doing a 100 theme art challenge on Deviantart at the moment, so I decided to pick out some words for drabbles here.

This is actually a challenge for me, I have a tendency to ramble when writing.


	2. M is for

**Mercy**- AU of the aftermath of the attack that killed Eva.

They'd been dropped callously before him, two tiny trembling forms of red and blue, silver hair shining in the false heavenly light of his throne room. The twin spawn of his most hated enemy here before him. Such a shame the two's dam had been unable to accompany them.

The great dark Lord Mundus stared down from his great height at the nestlings. Observing how the red one buried his face in the blue's chest, whimpering and sobbing whilst his brother tried to glare up at the towering demon. Blue's own arms trembled though, giving away his fear as he tried to protect his brother. red and blue, mixed together to become purple, the colour the cursed Sparda had enjoyed whilst in his human form.

Mundus chuckled and left his seat, shifting, morphing into his own human form. An angelic man shining with light he bent down to the twins, lowering a hand in benediction to touch the silver hair gently to the shocked gasps of the surrounding lords.

He took no notice except to smile in amusement as teeth and nails attacked his hand futilely, listening to the nestlings growls with pleasure.

Yes, he mused as slowly they stopped their pathetic attack to stare at him cautiously with blue eyes, a little mercy could go a long way.

Chuckling the Dark Lord stroked the hair of his new knights-in-training.

**Modesty**- Takes place in my female!Dante AU Manga meeting

Together again for the first time since their mothers death, the twins stared at each other.

Blue and red, male and female, ice and fire, yin and yang. they were polar opposites yet as one being. Each examined the other with a touch of uncertainty, though the brother hid his well. Until one matter asserted itself.

Vergil's eyebrow twitched. "Dante..." he forced out through gritted teeth as he stared at his baby sisters grown form. "Couldn't you have..." a strangled noise, "Dressed more _appropriately_?!"

Dante looked down at her open coat for a moment, then smirked, throwing her head back and laughing at Vergil's obvious discomfort.

**Magic** - Crackfic, various crossovers.

Dante had come to regard magic as a pain in the arse.

Aside from the amateur practitioners, whacked out teens and Satanists causing all kinds of mayhem with their misuse of the art, there were also a few strange encounters that to this day left him wishing he'd never bothered to climb out of bed in the first place.

There was that time he'd been chasing some kind of black robed creep and found some kids with wooden sticks shooting silver animals out of them. And then another time when he'd met some freaky cultists with masks shooting green lights and yelling _Avada Kedavra!_ at the top of their voices much to his bemusement.

Another time he'd passed three witches, overhearing some muttering about knicker elastic, the usefulness of an Igor and how rude young devils were nowadays, before he was hit round the ankles with a broomstick.

And then in Japan, during a quick, sneaky inspection of a shrine he'd been forced to hide quick as a young girl climbed out of a well and was followed by a red clad, white haired boy with dog ears. He'd almost gone after the kid for stealing his look, but had been distracted as to where in hell they'd managed to come from.

Magic was just plain confusing.

**Marksmanship**- Sparda, guns

Sparda had watched curiously as the gunsmith worked, forging for him a pair of these newfangled inventions called guns.

He'd taken them eagerly out back barely after the metal had cooled and the parts were assembled, Luce and Ombra they had already been christened. Man made and enthused with demonic energy he couldn't wait to try them out. Raising Ombra he did as he'd been instructed, watched by the gunsmith.

BANG! Ombra went off with a most satisfactory noise and demonstrated her effectiveness by creating a large hole in the target tree's bark. However Sparda wasn't quite prepared for the force that rushed back at him and knocked him off his feet, white hair now askew and monocle broken irreparably he glared at the gunsmith.

"Eh... yeah, should'a warned you 'bout that kickback." The man smiled apologetically.

------------------------

I got the idea for the first one early today. And then after writing it I decided to do a few more, all based on words beginning with the letter 'M'. Hope you enjoy.

Chapter 2 of 'The Good long Fight' is currently in the works.


	3. Down today

**Change** - Sparda

He couldn't do this anymore.

Every time he led forth an army to slaughter another helpless village his heart screamed out in protest. It had begun the day he met the eyes of a terrified human woman as she sought to shield herself and her child from his blade with a weak, soft fleshed limb.

He'd hesitated, and a snarling shadow had devoured them both.

Regret and sympathy grew and twisted in his heart like a weed, surviving any attempt to squash it.

He looked into three glowing eyes, his blade unsheathed and ready to carry out the full weight of his decision.

"I'm sorry, but I can't do this evil anymore… father."

---

**Ice** – Vergil

It was cold here. Whoever had painted the visions of hell wreathed in flames had been delusional surely.

He was sure some areas of the underworld were warmer then this, but right now, imprisoned in this tiny cell he felt chilled to the bone. Shivering against iced over chains and trying not to think of the warmth of the human world above.

His eyes roved to the blue skin of one arm, he almost felt like he was changing, morphing into something. That the cold was a part of him now, seeping into his very being.

He'd do anything to feel warm again, and Mundus' offer still stood on a silver platter.

---

The woman formerly known as Mary stood silently in the graveyard.

In front of her was a plain grave, laid for a loving mother by a murderous father. She'd never visited before; afraid that she would meet him here, but why would he come here? Why would a killer mourn his victim except in a mockery of innocence?

She knelt down and placed a bouquet of yellow flowers against the stone. "For you mother." She whispered, before standing and adjusting the Kalina Ann on her back.

It was payback time.

* * *

I had time in college, so I cranked these out.

The first, I can't claim original idea for, that Mundus is Sparda's father. I first read it in Jo Aubrams 'Through a Glass, Darkly' which is an amazing AU DMC1 by the way, though only archived at a site called Tainted Lust from what I know. I don't think it's true canonically in any way, but still a fun idea XD

Second, so many people describe Nelo Angelo as having cold skin, I suppose based mainly on his blue/dead appearance. Just a musing on that.


	4. M is for Mercy continued

**Mercy continued-**

"Concentrate!"

Dante jumped at the fierce tone of Griffon's voice, moments before blood flooded his vision from the sharp taloned blow across his brow. The wound healed in seconds though the sting lingered longer across the fourteen-year-olds forehead. "Ow!"

He looked up into the hard golden eyes of his teacher, "Sorry."

"I should think so." the eagle demon agreed, "Why Lord Mundus continues to waste his resources on you I do not know." Griffon turned back to the map in front of Dante's desk, the long brown hair of his weaker form swinging behind him alongside the large feathered cape that was all that remained of his wings.

Dante rubbed his arm across his face to clear it of his blood, staining the finely tailored sleeve of his shirt as he did so. "Me neither." he mumbled.

Unfortunately Griffon heard, "Ungrateful brat!" he planted his hands heavily in front of his student, glaring at Dante amidst piles of books and scrolls. "You take Lord Mundus' kindness for granted? Do you forget that he spared both yours and your brothers lives when most clamoured for your blood?! Especially since your father was-"

"The greatest traitor." Dante finished the often heard lecture for him, "I know. I know, I'm sorry Griffon, I don't mean to be ungrateful but this stuff is boring!" he protested, "I'd rather be out weapons training right now."

Griffon shook his head in exasperation, "It is true that your skills are more suited to the sword young one but skill in combat is not enough. This is what raises you above the lower beasts and humans, your intelligence. I will not allow you to squander it just so you can swing a sword about."

Dante huffed and folded his arms, "Fine, let's get it over with then."

"Hm, try not to sound too enthusiastic little nestling." The eagle shook his head in exasperation before stepping back to the front and continuing his lecture.

Dante fought to listen to the demon Lords words, he really did, but it was so dull he found his mind wandering. It hadn't always been so bad, back when he and Vergil would learn together. Back then Vergil would help him grasp these concepts, not because he wasn't intelligent enough, it was just like something in his mind refused to absorb the information unless it was pounded into him. But since the twins had reached their twelfth year they had been separated for lessons, while one learned to fight with Phantom the other suffered Griffon's long lectures on history and military tactics.

Dante quite enjoyed his lessons with Phantom, the lava spider's teaching methods appealed to him immensely. Namely teaching them the rudimentary basics of the weapons and then throwing them in with some lower class demons and letting them figure the rest out themselves. It allowed for the twins to develop their own styles and tactics, which both excelled at.

He bet Vergil was enjoying himself right now, though Vergil also enjoyed these lectures too. Idly he poked along their bond, only to receive a wave of annoyance before being shut out for his trouble.

Damn.

By the time the minutes had crawled by to his release he was almost visibly shaking with anticipation.

"Very well Master Dante." Griffon sighed. "You may leave, just try to come tomorrow with a better attitude."

_Keep dreaming_, Dante replied mentally, pushing himself to his feet and scattering paper everywhere. Before he got to the door though he was stopped by a hand on his shoulder, Griffon's eyes peered intently at him.

"Remember young one, you will see our Lord soon, I do not want to hear that you have disappointed him." Talons dug into his shoulder warningly before he was sent out into the hallway.

"No, don't want that." Dante rubbed his shoulder ruefully before hurrying to his and Vergil's quarters.

----

"You got in trouble again." Vergil observed the moment he saw his twin walk into their spacious quarters.

Dante grinned at him without guilt, "Obviously." In a second he had bounded over to press close to his twin. "Why do you care?"

"I don't." Vergil grunted, shrugging him off to sit on their bed, he brushed back his hair from his eyes. "Mundus will though."

"Lord Mundus Vergil, remember?" Dante said mockingly, bouncing onto the bed that was piled high with blankets and pillows. "That's dis-re-spect-ful!" he emphasised every syllable emphatically.

"Shut your mouth." Vergil growled, clamping his hand over Dante's mouth. "You'll get more than a berating from Griffon if you carry on." He yanked his hand away a moment later after Dante sunk his teeth into the pale flesh.

"Relax brother," Dante shook his head, licking his lips, "You're acting like he can hear us in here."

Vergil growled and sucked on his hand a moment until the wound healed over, "Maybe he can you idiot."

"Eh?"

Vergil narrowed his eyes before sighing and before Dante could voice any protest had seized him roughly about the neck and dragged him under the pile of blankets. Once he was sure he had himself and his brother safely buried beneath layers of cloth he pressed his head close to his other half's.

"Have you never thought Dante…" he whispered after his brother stopped squirming, "About just who we are?"

Dante frowned in the darkness, "What do you mean? I know who we are."

"No Dante." Vergil said patiently, "About whose blood runs through our veins, we are Sparda's children."

"I know that." Dante muttered after a moment, "We're always being reminded about it, usually during a 'Mundus' generosity' speech. The spawn of the traitor."

"Why do you think we're alive?"

"I don't know." Dante answered after a moment of thought.

Vergil nodded, "If you were a military leader who had almost died at the hands of your enemy would you leave a potential threat like us alive?"

He frowned, "I… don't know, probably not."

"What if you thought you could bend them to your will?" Vergil prodded, "Make them serve you?"

Dante let out an audible sigh, "That's why we're alive, so long as we're useful to him he'll keep us around."

"Exactly," Vergil nodded, though the gesture was lost here in the dark. "Now do you see why you shouldn't be mouthing off like that? Even when we're alone there may be eyes and ears watching us."

"I know Verge, I'm not stupid." Dante muttered, "I just hate having to be so obedient all the time, I don't like learning all this stuff. It's so dull."

"Would you rather be dead than bored?" Vergil asked harshly.

"Of course not!" Dante elbowed him under the covers, whether on purpose or by accident was hard to tell in these close quarters.

"Then quit acting like this okay? I don't want to lose you." Vergil said in a rare moment of honest verbal affection. "You're the only person I can trust."

Dante smiled, his pearly whites a faint grey in the gloom, "Don't be silly Vergil, I won't ever leave you. We're twins aren't we? We'll always be together."

"I hope so." Vergil smiled back, wrapping a possessive arm around his twin. "We're slaves Dante, it's never spoken outright, but that's what we are. Birds in a golden cage."

"Maybe we should escape then." Dante said with characteristic plainness, causing Vergil to chuckle sombrely. "Fly away."

"Maybe. Someday." He pressed their foreheads together.

"Definitely." Dante insisted before pressing a light kiss to Vergil's lips. "I'm pretty comfy Verge, want to sleep before dinnertime?"

"As you like." He answered indulgently, kissing Dante in return before the two rearranged limbs in their makeshift nest, settling down in the warmth and comforting darkness of their mountain of blankets.

----

Mundus nodded approvingly at the twins as they kneeled before him days later. They'd answered all his questions appropriately and from what Griffon and Phantom had reported to him they progressed in exactly the manner he'd envisioned from the day he took them into his possession.

Except perhaps the younger could use some encouragement in his studies, but the news of his potential prowess in battle was enough to stay Mundus' hand for now.

"Well done, both of you exceed my expectations." he purred in a lilting tone, placing one hand on each of their bowed heads.

He observed with pleasure the matching black clothes except for the waving patterns across their shoulders, only there to distinguish one from the other. He'd outfitted them straight away in this colour, barring them from the red and blue they had been clad in before.

He also noted that the elder had worn his silver hair down akin to his brother, once he had come forward in Mundus' presence with it brushed back. Mundus had been quick to express his displeasure at the style.

He was going to make sure neither became a replica of their thrice-cursed sire.

"Soon I will have armour forged for you." He said, knowing that blue eyes were now watching him he painted a smile on his face. "Then when you reach your maturity I will send you forth into the human world to prepare the way for me, this is what your lives have been in preparation for."

An added bonus, he had thought he would have to wait until his power completely returned to him before he could invade the human world, but with the surprisingly quick growth rate of Sparda's children that day was brought suddenly nearer. With them he would unlock the gateway that Sparda had sealed and take the human world into his grasp once more. This time there would be no one to stop him.

"Do you understand?" he asked them calmly, sitting upon his throne.

"Yes my Lord." They answered in perfect unison.

He gestured, "Then you may go, continue to work hard in your training."

"Yes my Lord."

Mundus grinned evilly as he watched them leave, things were definitely improving.

* * *

Mercy in the second chapter of these little drabbles is by far my favourite that I've written in 'Moments'. It was such a dark AU I wanted to do something more. So I did obviously. Makes me feel pretty sad for the twins.

I do like the idea of Phantom and Griffon being the twin's teachers; if I were Mundus I'd use my best minions to watch them too.


End file.
